Meet Emelie Felix | Landscape Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Emelie Felix and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Emelie, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I am born and raised in Uppsala, Sweden and moved to Arizona in 2012. I had just graduated collage with a teaching degree in art and moved here to start a life with my husband. I have always painted and loved anything creative, but it wasn’t until 2019, when my husband unexpectedly passed away, that I was cracked open and realized that art was going to be my savior. I decided to stay here in Arizona, to be close to his memory, and started my healing journey by painting landscapes. I had never really painted a landscape before but it was so freeing and the scenes I painted brought me peace.

Today I see myself as a landscape artist and I mainly paint Swedish and Arizona scenery to bring my two homes and my two identities together.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve always loved creating and I’ve always had a calling for it but it was in 8th grade I realized that I wanted art to be a part of my future profession. I attend an art program in high school and later went to collage to become an art teacher. I moved to Arizona just two weeks after graduating collage so I never got to teach in Sweden. Luckily I was able to use my degree here in the U.S. and started working as a full time art teacher at an elementary school, where I still work today.

After starting to use painting as a tool to heal I realized I had to keep going and create more frequently as it truly benefited my well-being. To me art is the purest form of self-expression. My art pieces were resonating with people around me and I started getting requests to purchase my paintings as well as commission requests. In March of 2022, on the exact ten year anniversary of my move to the U.S. I launched my own business, selling my original art, prints, and merchandise through my own website, www.emeliefelix.com. I have since then launched a couple of painting collections, and a Christmas ornament collection that completely sold out.

My art is really about merging my two homes (Sweden and Arizona) and their two identities together, and to do so in a heartfelt way. I create serene landscapes with the intention of bringing peacefulness to the room or space in which my art is being placed. There truly is no better feeling than when a painting find its forever home.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
There are so many great places to visit here in the valley, or in Arizona in general! The nature is my absolute number one. There is in an endless amount of beautiful hiking trails. Any of the summits (like Camelback, or Piestewa) are a must. I also really like McDowell Mountain Preserve and Holbert trail to Dobbins lookout at South Mountain. There is something so grounding and relaxing about being out in the desert.

After a long hike you have to feed yourself, and there are a ton of really awesome places to eat as well. I’m a breakfast/brunch lover and my go-to place is Butters Pancakes and Cafe. They have a Swedish pancake on their menu that is delicious, especially when paired with a side of bacon and hash browns.

As an art lover I can definitely recommend Phoenix Art Museum, or the famous First Friday Art Walk in Downtown Phoenix. There is so much to see and explore. The Roosevelt Row Arts District is always a hit with its murals and many galleries whether it’s First Friday or not.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have a lot of people to thank that have helped me on my journey since I moved to the U.S, but one organization that stepped in when I really needed support after my husband passed away was SWEA Arizona. SWEA (Swedish Women’s Educational Association) is a non-profit organization and a global network outside Sweden that promotes the Swedish language, culture, and traditions. SWEA has over 6,000 members in more than 70 chapters in over 30 countries. The Arizona chapter became like family to me. It was so great to connect with other women from my home country that also had moved abroad and understood the experience. As a way to give back to this community I joined as a board member in 2020, and later served as the president of the Arizona chapter in 2021.

Website: https://www.emeliefelix.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emeliefelixart/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emeliefelixart